The present invention relates to intrabody sensors, and in particular an ingestible data recorder capsule medical device which senses and records information within a body.
Obtaining information about biologic conditions on the inside of the body poses at least two basic issues. First, one must place a sensing device in the body at the desired location. For example, to obtain data about biologic conditions on the large intestine or colon, one must insert a sensor at that location. Second, the data obtained must be transmitted from the internal location to a remote location outside of the human body for processing, storage and/or analysis.
In one example, a conventional endoscope inserted within a colon can obtain internal information about the colon, such as an image of any polyps in the colon, and then transmit that image to a remote location for real time viewing and/or storage. Unfortunately, use of an endoscope is quite invasive requiring insertion of a probe within the colon and simultaneous extension of communication lines from the probe to a location outside of the colon. Moreover, in addition to manual insertion, this method requires manually maintaining the position of the sensing device, e.g. probe, within the body. Accordingly, only locations within the body that are reachable by insertable probes can be monitored using this method.
In another example, an inert, ingestible medical capsule is known which is capable of sensing temperature within the digestive tract and then transmitting that temperature data to a receiver located remotely outside of the body. Since the capsule is inert, i.e. non-digestible, the capsule can be reused for subsequent procedures. Use of this medical capsule requires the patient to be located closely to the remote data receiver for an extended period of time to insure that the sensed data is properly transmitted to the remote receiver.
Perhaps more importantly, this conventional capsule is limited to sensing a single type of data, e.g. temperature. Moreover, the amount of data recorded remotely is limited by the size and strength of components located within the capsule, such as the size and amount of memory storage available within the capsule, the size and strength of transmitter in the conventional capsule, as well as by the associated wireless communication technique. Naturally, these constraints artificially limit the amount and types of biologic data that could otherwise be sensed and recorded throughout the digestive tract since the biologic information available is virtually limitless.
Accordingly, conventional intrabody sensors have several limitations. First, manual insertion of sensors limit the number and type of body locations that can be monitored and also require extensive remote (i.e. outside of the body) equipment support during the procedure. Second, more mobile sensors, such as ingestible capsules, require a remote receiver for receiving data transmitted from the capsule. This requirement forces the patient to remain relatively stationary for a protracted period of time during the procedure, or forces the patient to wear some form of remote receiver. Finally, the conventional capsule is limited in the amount and type of data sensed and recorded.
The present invention provides a swallowable data recorder medical device. The swallowable data recorder medical device includes a capsule enclosing a sensing module for sensing a biologic condition within a body. A recording module is provided including an atomic resolution storage device. The recording module is electrically coupled to the sensing module for recording data representative of the sensed biologic condition in the atomic resolution storage device. A power supply is coupled to the recording module.